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Lana Strika graduated last summer from Paris 5 University with honors
and a Master's degree in clinical psychology. The 24-year-old Parisian
speaks five languages - three fluently - and has had several internships
at French health centers.
That kind of resume should be landing Strika
plenty of job offers. But so far, her search for a full-time job has been
disappointing.
Strika says she's sent out plenty of letters to hospitals inquiring
about positions. She's gotten nice replies, but no job offers. Many
prospective employers tell her there are no jobs to be had.
Frustration over the job crunch facing young
French like Strika exploded onto the streets last month, as angry youths
protested a new law designed to give employers incentives to hire young
workers - the incentive being that they could fire them, too.
On Monday, the center-right French government rescinded the law.
Revised legislation includes financial aid to employers who hire
disadvantage youths.
Roughly 14 percent of French between the ages of 15 and 26 are not in
school and are not employed. That figure is far higher among ethnic
immigrants and in poorer parts of France.
But Simon Tilford, an economist at the Center for European Reform, says
France is not alone.
"There is a problem of youth employment right across Europe. It is
particularly bad in France, because there is very little infrastructure in
the way of training. So, people leave school ill-prepared for the labor
market. The other problem is the very high levels of employment
protection," explained Tilford.
It is very difficult to fire full-time workers, not only in France, but
elsewhere in Europe. And politicians are reluctant to push through
unpopular labor reforms that might cost them the next election.
Those reforms that do succeed are achieved with difficulty. Workers in
southwestern Germany, for example, finally agreed earlier this month to
work longer hours for less pay. But that came after a long strike.
Glenda Quintini, an economist at the Paris-based Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development, says labor reforms have been far
less successful elsewhere in Europe.
"Permanent jobs are untouchable in many countries, so firing
restrictions are very high. You have high costs for firing somebody. You
risk going to court, etc. So, those jobs remain very protected," said
Quintini.
European businesses are getting around these constraints by hiring
workers on short-term and part-time contracts. In many countries,
companies have trial periods, before they agree to hire on a permanent
basis.
France is no exception. There are a number of different ways French
businesses can hire employees on a non-permanent basis. But the
now-abandoned youth labor law was the only one in Europe specifically
targeting young workers.
Regardless of what legislation the government comes up with, young
French, like Giullaume Violet, are worried about their future.
Violet is the chapter head of France's national student's union at
Paris 13, a public university in the Paris suburbs. He says, every
generation has done better than the previous one. Now, he worries he will
not be as well-off as his parents. He wants to be a public school history
teacher. But there are few state jobs available.
A number of French have gone abroad to look for work.
Catherine Le Yaouanc, head of the British Chamber of Commerce in
France, says she gets a steady stream of young French job seekers.
"The big difference between Britain and France is about diplomas," she
explained. "If you don't have a diploma in France, it's very difficult to
get a job first and then afterwards, you should have the right
qualification, and know the right people,so it's easier to get a job. In
Britain, it's so flexible.It's easier to get a job whether you have
got a diploma or not."
Lana Strika is also considering looking for work overseas. She has
managed to find work in France - but for only 12 hours a week, and it does
not pay well. But Strika still hopes for her dream job as a full-time
psychologist at a hospital. | 
